


It Surfaces on the First Freeze of Winter

by MarsupialsOfMars



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:15:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21988654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarsupialsOfMars/pseuds/MarsupialsOfMars
Summary: Out of pity (and maybe a promise to get a job) Logan agrees to accompany his roommate Roman on a quest to find an elusive cephalopod-seeming cryptid out in a rare Florida freeze. Logan is skeptical, but after an unfortunate (or maybe fortunate) plunge into the icy water, he finds his own future begins to grow murkier and murkier, not unlike the water he finds himself wading through far more than he anticipated.
Relationships: Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders
Comments: 13
Kudos: 83
Collections: Sanders Sides Secret Santa 2019





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My secret santa for Dorkoverse on tumblr! It is unfinished as of the due date because I got way into the story and felt the time constraints would force me to half-ass it. It still has a strong start at 10000 words or so! I hope you love it as much as i love writing it! Merry Xmas!

Logan paged through the large hardcover book on his lap. Despite its formidable construction, it clearly wasn't as old or rare as Roman was making it out to be. Artistic, sure, but fake nonetheless. He examined picture after picture. Fascinating specimens. True affronts to science and known physics, but extremely detailed and well designed.  
"Stop flipping through! I bookmarked it for a reason!" Roman swatted Logan's hands away and forcefully reopened the book to the page marked with a sticky note. "SEE?!"  
He pointed to a series of dates down the side of the page.  
"It's tonight! Perfect half moon, first freeze of winter!"  
"Anyone could calculate the date of a half moon." Logan looked up at his roommate in relative disinterest.  
"Not everyone can calculate the first freeze of the year from centuries proir! And in FLORIDA no less! This is SPECIFIC!"  
Logan rolled his eyes. "For the last time, I highly doubt this Barnes and Noble book is centuries old."  
Roman's face flared red. "I did NOT get it at BARNES AND NOBLE! I told you, I found it on a quest through dangerous and unknown territory!"  
"A trip to the library would be unknown territory to you I suppose..." Logan mumbled and continued to examine the creature's design. Clearly cephalopod inspired, a writhing mass of tentacles erupting from a swamp-like environment and separate studies of suction cup markings, a beak, bite marks and digestive fluids on partially eaten fish. Nothing about the page portrayed the author's credibility, their art style was clearly not that of a scientific mind; more of a fascinated and creative artist, An "adventurer" like Roman it seemed.  
A true researcher would take time to map known proportions of the creature, analyze the bite marks to determine jaw shape and hunting behaviors, observe and develop an objective understanding of the creature as a species. They wouldn't treat the find as some legend or campfire story and leave little hints and dates to intrigue their readers, they wouldn't spend valuable time drawing cattails and algae in the moonlight if they had proper view of their specimen. That was why Logan didn't read the book with any form of sincerity, or believe Roman's stories about an adventuring scientist who sounded suspiciously like the author of Journey to the Center of the Earth, and/or Stanford Pines.  
He was starting to believe that Roman had printed out pages off those cryptid conspiracy forums he often explored with Virgil to illustrate and bind them as if they were an ancient book, in order to make Logan more susceptible to the suggestion as well as quell his skepticism.  
Logan paused. He looked back at the drawings. They did look more like Roman's art style now that the thought had crossed his mind. A knowing smile stretched across his face. He looked back up at Roman.  
"Wow... I'm impressed, this was quite the project, and it turned out so well!"  
Roman raised a brow. "What are you on about now?"  
"That's why we were out of coffee wasn't it?!" Logan brought the book to his nose. Sure enough; "You coffee stained each page by hand... incredible."  
Roman flushed and grabbed the book to hug it to his chest. "I did not! This is a very important real book and was written by one real person!"  
Logan rested his chin on clasped hands and raised his eyebrows in smug victory.  
Roman pouted. "FINE! But I'll have you know that all of those drawings are based on real captured footage!"  
"Uh huh. How long did this take you?"  
Roman sighed. "A year or so. Not in a row. Just whenever I saw something important."  
"Have you thought of a career in bookbinding? This is truly impressive."  
Roman seemed to forget his disappointment and puffed out his chest. "Oh, I know. A career like that would be too easy for me though..."  
"Clearly, I often fail to remember that you prefer doing magnificent and perilous tasks sin payment upon your odd aversion toward tangible profit."  
"I'll find a job eventually, quit with the pressure!"  
"Are you pressured? You certainly don't seem to be too stressed or apologetic regarding your half of the rent."  
"I need a job that speaks to me okay?! A friend would understand that."  
Logan rolled his eyes but decided to let it slide for the moment. He was still curious about the general point of everything.  
"So what was your purpose of showing me this?"  
Roman lit up with excitement. "Oh yeah! Because we, you and me Logan..."  
"That is what the pronoun 'we' would situationally entail."  
"Shush! WE are going on a-"  
"Please, for the love of Charles Darwin, do NOT say quest!"  
"QUEST!" Roman produced two pairs of galoshes from seemingly nowhere.  
"Why?!"  
"I told you Sir Issac No-fun, it surfaces tonight! And it's hardly far, it's a floridian legend! We need to be there! So I can prove to you that this stuff is real! And finally make a discovery!"  
"Well by definition you wouldn't be making a discovery if true footage and accounts of this creature already exist."  
"You know what I mean, I want to see it with my own eyes as clear as day, earn my title as a great adventurer, have my name in history books!"  
"Articles and textbooks most likely, not many history books state species discoveries."  
"Can you maybe like? Not correct me for one moment? And let me have this?" Roman stubbornly pulled on his galoshes.  
Logan rolled his eyes. He looked at his watch, then pulled out his planner. Unfortunately, he had nothing scheduled for that night or early the next morning, giving him no truthful excuse for refusing, and without that he couldn't morally decline when faced with such excitement from his roommate. He sighed.  
"If you promise to at least get an interview for a job by the end of the month, I will acquiesce to your request."  
Roman thought a moment. He nodded. "Deal."  
"Fantastic. Give me a moment to get my coat."  
Within a few minutes to get ready, and a few more minutes to pinpoint a location, they were in the car. It was a little further than Logan would have preferred to drive that night, but surprisingly close considering the rest of the sprawling legends in Roman's book of fantastic beasts, a mere forty-five minutes.  
It was already six, so Logan prepared himself for a late night considering the potential time they'd spend searching for the specimen. After all, according to the page, the creature had been first reported twenty years prior and had only had four sightings since, and no specific directions were given to sighting locations other than the mention of a forest containing multiple acres of swampland.  
And of course, Logan wasn't really concerned about how much time it would take to FIND the alleged beast; he was more dreading how long Roman would persist in trekking through swamps before giving up.  
"Just to be clear, I'm setting a time limit of midnight. At midnight we turn back and go home no matter what."  
"But-!"  
"No buts, I'm entertaining this far past my comfort level already. If you deny me that I'm driving back myself and leaving you there."  
Roman groaned. "Fine. Just wait until I get my license, then you'll be sorry..."  
"Falsehood, I think I'll rather enjoy the free time I'll gain not having to taxi you from place to place."  
"You can just say you hate me." Roman huffed dramatically.  
"Alright. I hate you." Logan drawled as he turned onto the highway. Roman gasped.  
"Wow... I thought you were a friend."  
"I'm a monster who pays your rent, cooks you food, and drives you to parties. I clearly despise you."  
Roman pouted. He pulled out his phone and plugged it into the dash. Beyonce started to shake the car. Logan yanked the cord out and plugged in his own phone, resuming his podcast on the fascinating reverse evolution of whales. Roman whined.  
"Hush. I'm spending my night wading through a poorly lit swamp for you, you're going to let me have this."  
Roman was relatively quiet the rest of the drive, which would have made Logan feel the slightest bit bad about his behavior if not factoring in how exhausted he was with Roman already. As it stood he relished the silence.  
As he drove down down the highway, he watched the sun touch down on the horizon, the sky flaring a warm dandelion yellow in a matter of minutes. As beautiful as it was, it meant the dark was coming fast. Logan was already dreading the glare on his glasses from the reflection of his LED flashlight off the swamp. He began to regret agreeing to this escapade.  
"Woah..." a breathy exclamation from the passengers seat brought Logan out of his frustration. "The sky is so pretty."  
Roman spoke for the first time in twenty minutes. Logan looked over. His neck was craned out the window, soft golden light bathing his face and flitting through his hair. His eyes were closed and his lips were slightly upturned in pure bliss. For a moment he looked much less obnoxious than he did twenty minutes prior.  
"Yeah..." Logan agreed. "It'll be gone in a few minutes, and then the dark will be exceedingly frustrating to navigate." Except, he didn't say that second part. His prior pessimism seemed to have quickly dissipated, and he no longer felt the need to. It confused him, but it was a welcome development that carried him through the rest of the drive.


	2. Chapter 2

"Stop here!" Roman broke the silence. Logan tightened his grip on the wheel.  
"What do you mean 'stop here'?! we're on the highway!"  
"This exit! Right here!"  
Logan yanked the wheel to the right, just barely making it onto the ramp. He caught his breath as he slowed down. "A little warning next time?!"  
"Sorry, theres not really a good way to set your destination as the middle of a forest..."  
Logan sighed. "Where do I go now?"  
"Right in a mile or so."  
Logan turned off the road into a gravel parking lot, stones crackling under tires as he swung into a space in the otherwise empty lot. He parked and pulled out the key. The moment the rumble of the car died down, Logan was practically assaulted with silence. All the bugs were dead from the chill of the unusual Florida fall, and the loud diurnal creatures were finished with their daily activities, some having retired to hibernation, whether it was common for their species or not. It was, Logan had to admit, quite a fascinating coincidence that Roman's book had predicted such a rare occurrence. The coldness of the air through Roman's open window froze Logan's sinuses and a shiver rippled down his spine. The uncommon dryness produced stillness, where noise fell flat, as if having frozen and fallen to the earth in a puff of frost. The only audible sounds were the occasional crackle of wood freezing and thawing, swaying on the precipice of 32 degrees, and the distant rumble of the highway.  
As mystifying as it was, Logan was not looking forward to sloshing through newly crisped ice water. His galoshes nearly reached his knees and he had snow pants underneath, but it didnt help his imagining water breaching the lip and soaking into his winter socks and outerwear.   
Before Logan could even unbuckle, Roman was out of the car and holding the driver's side door open with a flourish.  
"Out out out, adventure awaits!" He practically tore Logan from his seat and out into the frigid, below-freezing air. Logan coughed as his own breath pierced his throat.   
"Come on, we've got six hours!"  
"MAXIMUM." Logan already regretted giving Roman such a wide timeframe. He'd grossly underestimated the potential misery of this excursion, and his Florida-resident intolerance to cold.  
"Whatever, grab the flashlights!"   
Logan complied with uncharacteristically dramatized effort. Roman rolled his eyes.  
"You already agreed to this come on."  
Logan locked the car and followed Roman into the dark, dank, silent forest.  
The first hour passed in a relatively focused fashion; Roman was intently searching every inch of bog in the general area, whipping his head around at every sound he heard, and Logan followed a few yards away, glancing around as if he were trying to help. At least the high specific heat of the water meant that it still hadn't cooled far past the relative warmth of the afternoon. His fears of frostbite were quelled, though it still wasn't pleasant. He moved slowly, though while Roman's pace was slowed by his careful observation, Logan was more focused on finding solid swamp floor that set the water level below the lip of his galoshes. By the way Roman was powering through, his socks must have already been soaked.  
"Lo! Have you been following me this whole time?!" Roman seemed to extend his attention past his bubble of focus long enough to notice Logan. "We have to split up! That was the whole point of getting your help, to cover more ground!" Roman shoved Logan in annoyance, causing him to throw out his arms to steady himself before he could be entirely drenched.   
"Well I didnt want to leave you to your own devices. I assumed I was here for the buddy system, lending assistance if something were to grab you and such."   
"So you DO think it's out here!"  
"I was more referring to alligators and/or snakes considering we're wading through the dangerous Florida swampland at night with no emergency services immediately present."   
Roman rolled his eyes, difficult to see in the nearly depleted sunlight. "Just go look somewhere else, we're in silence, I'll yell if I need help."  
Logan hesitantly complied. The thought of Roman being in danger and having to run through knee deep water to assist... it was not a pleasant fantasy.  
He sloshed his way through the algae, the thin, barely visible layer of ice on the water's surface shattering as he dragged his shins through. He looked back to find he was far enough away that he could no longer see Roman through the trees and darkness. He stilled and listened: He could hear the faint splash of Roman's galoshes in the distance, getting further and further away. He suddenly felt intensely concerned, but continued on nonetheless.  
The swamp seemed much more sinister without Roman nearby. Maybe it was just the presence of another person that greatly eased the feelings of unsafely, or maybe it was something about Roman's unwavering confidence and bravery in particular. Or maybe something about the environment really did change. Unlikely, Logan reigned himself in, it made much more logical sense that the feeling was related to human psychology considering human evolution's focus on social dependence. Though Logan was too preoccupied in the moment to marvel at the complex social creature he was. He was just plain uneasy, and the feeling continued to grow.  
He looked back. He could no longer hear Roman's movements. His heart pounded. He decided that despite the fact that he was logically safe, it would be best to turn around and catch up to Roman to slow his rushing adrenaline. He turned back the direction he'd come and began making his very arduous way back.  
But something struck him. If he went back, Roman would undoubtedly make fun of him for his cowardice, he would never let Logan live down that he truly believed in the beast of the Florida swampland, however false that notion was. So he paused, and the splashes and ripples of his marching stilled.   
And just in that moment, there was a splash. A loud one, not produced by any movement of Logans making, but unmistakably produced by something large.  
Logan's heart skipped a beat and he froze. He was thankfully able to swallow a scream before it escaped his throat.  
Explanations coursed through his mind, maybe a falling branch, maybe an animal of some kind, hopefully not an alligator... he slowly turned around.  
He was met with innocent ripples, as if whatever it was had come and gone. Yet it was notable that the force was enough to generate small waves, which crested slightly and lapped at the trees nearby.  
Logan kept his eyes on the origin of the disturbance as he slowly started inching backward, toe to heel, carefully assuring solid ground before shifting his weight.   
Then something wrapped around his right calf. Even through his boot he could tell that it wasn't a vine, or any form of flora. There was pressure, concious force to it, tightening.  
Logan barely had the time to process what was happening before it had crested the lip of his galoshes, and something soft and wet had coiled snugly around the back of his knee, immediately soaking through his snowpants and dripping down into his socks. He barely managed a scream before his reflexive pull at the restraint caused the ground under his left foot to give way, sending him plunging into the near-frozen swamp water.  
The temerature shift stunned his senses, and it was a couple seconds before he started thrashing. Despite logically knowing the water was only a few feet deep, he coudn't find the bottom or surface no matter where he reached, he couldn't judge direction nor distance, all he could sense was the warmth rapidly leaving his body and the breath bursting from his throat in clusters of bubbles despite himself.   
He could feel the thing wrapping tighter around his leg, coiling higher. Then another on his arm, oozing down and lacing itself around his wrist and through his fingers. Logan thrashed more violently as he realized the thing had suction cups. his mind raced to recall any sort of cephalopod this big that lived in the Florida swampland, something that would be awake and alive in such cold, but it was an utterly ridiculous notion. He thought back to Roman's illustration of the swamp beast, but that was even more inconceivable. With logic failing him, he continued to pull at his restraints. He could feel himself losing consciousness, his movements weakening.   
Suddenly, he heard a shout muffled from above, somehow audible through the frantic splashing. Within seconds, the creature was gone. Logan's limbs were free and he felt the jet of some sort of siphon whip his hair across his face as the beast retreated.   
Logan reoriented himself, and his feet found mud. He pushed up, breaching the surface of the water. He gasped in lungfulls of cold, burning winter air, rivulets of ice water pouring down his skin.  
"LOGAN!" Logan flopped his soaked hair away from his eyes in time to see Roman vainly attempting to run full speed through knee-deep water. He seemed to have just managed to get Logan in his line of sight, and seemed quite worried.  
"Roman! You won't bel-"   
Logan stopped himself. Whatever he'd just encountered, it was unknown, unheard of. He thought back to Roman's book, the beautiful sketches with no scientific substance. He thought of Roman's favorite stories, valient quests to slay the beast. If Logan told him what had happened, he wouldn't go into it with an eye for intricacies. He'd make the find into a spectacle, a fantasy adventure. If Logan DIDN'T tell him, he could come back, study the beast, find out what happened in a scientific sense. He could of course tell Roman once he had a better grasp on the situation, and it would be the safer option anyway. At least that's what he told himself. He swallowed his guilty conscience and chuckled sheepishly through his chattering teeth.  
"I wouldn't have expected that I would be the first to lose my footing..."  
Roman wasn't laughing. "Are you okay?! Cmon, let's get you to the car!"   
Logan nearly protested, but his adrenaline-warmed body was beginning to cool, and he started to feel the weight of his soggy coat.  
"Here." Without a second thought, Roman pulled off his own coat and helped Logan out of his. Logan pulled on the dry coat. Although his shirt underneath was still soaked, it felt much better.   
"You're sure you aren't too cold with no coat?"  
"Oh I'm freezing. But you're at a far greater risk of getting hypothermia. I wouldn't be suprised if your core temperature dropped a few degrees." Roman gestured to Logan's dripping hair plastered across his forehead. Logan blinked, suprised.  
"That's... right."  
"Cmon, give me some credit, I pick up a few things hanging around a nerd like you all the time. Now cmon."   
Logan yelped as Roman lifted Logan out of the water. He reflexively wrapped his arms around Roman's neck.  
"This is a highly inefficient method of carrying a person of my body weight!"  
Roman shook his head.   
"This is how the princes do it Lo. I gotta."  
Logan warmed slightly as he blushed, providing a drop in his risk of hypothermia. Roman was quite helpful.  
As they began to move toward the car, though, Logan couldn't help but look over Roman's shoulder, back at the water still churned up and muddy. He noticed a glow under the water from the flashlight he'd dropped when he fell. He didn't think it worth it to tell Roman, it was a cheap one anyway.   
He looked up from the glow. Across the water, a few yards past, He made out a strange glint. Two iridescent dots, seeming to float ominously on the water's surface. Then they were gone. The glow of the flashlight began to dim, before finally succumbing to the water.


	3. Chapter 3

"Yes, I can get the results to you, just give me a moment." Logan sandwiched his phone between his ear and shoulder and reached for his laptop. He opened a new email and attached the Excel spreadsheet full of tediously recorded lab results. He typed up a subject and a brief body and sent it.  
"I apologize for the wait, this disorganization won't become a habit of mine... yes, I'm suprised as well... no I don't need a sick day." Logan quickly covered the receiver before he sneezed.  
"Yes... yes I fell into ice water... well thank you for your concern, but it was nobody's mistake but mine... yes ma'am. Thank you ma'am. See you tommorrow, yes. Goodbye."   
Logan allowed his boss to hang up first. He was relieved that his reputation as a near perfect lab assistant was paying off. He basically had a steel cable safety net with how perfect his record was at that point.   
He prided himself on his workplace perfection; he and his boss were even working to get him a promotion of some kind. That made it all the more odd that he had forgotten to turn in his data the previous night. Whatever had happened had taken a far greater toll on him then he thought it did, his mind often drifting back to the night's events without his concious effort, making it difficult to focus.  
He had an urge to go back, to find his attacker and inspect every inch of it, regardless of his schedule or his job or his financial stability. The beast seemed so much more important, no matter what he told himself to the contrary. It felt big, revolutionary, life-changing.   
He finally gave up. He shut his laptop and grabbed a notebook and writing utensils. He slig them into his work bag and slung it over his shoulder.  
"Roman! I'm going to work!"  
Roman's head peeked out through the kitchen doorway. "I thought you didn't have work today? That was the whole reason we went out last night."  
"I forgot to write it on my schedule I guess."  
Roman gasped dramatically. "YOU? Forgot to schedule something?! The end must be coming for us all!"  
Logan rolled his eyes. "Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, simple statistics."  
"Alright. But take care of yourself, stay hydrated. I'm not gonna let you get sicker after I went through all that trouble pampering you last night."  
Logan could still almost taste the hot cocoa and chicken chicken noodle soup and feel the blankets wrapped around him from the previous night.   
"I'll be okay. If it's any consolation, you're in my will. Bedside drawer, you can't miss it."  
"Shut up!"   
Logan smiled slightly and pulled on his coat. He grabbed his galoshes and ducked out the door.  
The drive seemed much longer without Roman, even though they hadn't talked much anyway. Logan gripped the wheel in anticipation. And maybe a hint of guilt for lying to Roman, but he reminded himself of his reasoning.  
He was a little apprehensive, considering that he was reentering dangerous territory without Roman's extra protection, though he might have been even more scared of the alternative. He tried not to consider that he may have come out for nothing, that he may have to live never finding out what the thing really was.   
He thought back to Roman's legend, the note that the creature only emerged on the first freeze of winter during a half moon. Logan hoped, considering that that part was a little more ghost-story like, that it was merely dramatization. After all, species weren't nearly that specific.   
He pulled once again into the empty gravel lot. He checked the temperature. Not freezing, but not warm either. Thirty-eight. He took a breath and gripped the swiss army knife in his coat pocket before stepping out into the chill.   
The woods looked much different in the day; much less intimidating. Logan plunged into the swamp with little hesitation. It was a bit difficult to locate the scene of his fall considering how dissimilar everything seemed in the light, but after a relatively short amount of time, Logan found it. He dipped his hand into the water and grabbed a piece of hard plastic. He shook out the poor, waterlogged flashlight and tucked it into his pocket. It was of no use to him, but he wasn't one to litter.   
He looked out intently across the still surface of the water for any disturbance. A few minutes went by. His eyes flicked toward some fresh ripples. Just a twig fallen from a tree overhead. He sighed as he finally began to reflect on what he was doing, how dumb it was, how much time he was wasting. The longer he stood the more stupid he felt.   
Until he felt something glide across the toes of his boot. He jerked his foot back and reached out for a nearbye tree. He gripped it for stability and retrieved his knife from his pocket. He brandished it down toward the water. Against his better judgement, he forced himself to remain still.   
Once again, he felt something slide over his foot. It wasn't a tentacle, it was larger, heavier. The body. Logan waited a second longer to be sure. The creature rested its weight against his leg. Logan sucked in a breath. Just as he felt tentacles begin to wrap his foot, he kicked. His leg strained under the weight and his foot was enveloped by boneless flesh, but he managed to throw it off. The beast breached the surface of the water, just long enough for Logan to see a dark green mass of writhing tentacles, before crashing back into the swamp, sending waves tall enough to soak Logan's socks.  
Logan gripped his blade and plunged his arms in where the creature had fallen. They were met with what he imagined a human corpse would feel like after a month soaked in vinegar. He resisted the urge to let go and wrestled the cephalopod from the water. Before it could slip out of his arms, he strained his back muscles and swung his upper body, effectively granny-tossing the beast into the risen root system of a fallen tree.  
A chorus of wet flopping sounds accompanied the creature's struggle, similar to one repeatedly lifting spaghetti and dropping it back into a pool of sauce. It soon realized it's helplessness, now tangled uselessly in roots and it's own tentacles, and ceased to thrash.   
Logan blinked, still reeling from the adrenaline. The cryptid of the Florida swamps. He had it. He hesitantly stepped forward to get a closer look. The creature let out a pitiful noise, a bubbling, growl-type whimper. Logan reached out, and rather than recoiling, the thing reached out as well, matching his approach.   
Logan retracted his hand, prompting another whine. He inspected the creature: it was primarily a dark grey-green, though it had scalloped patterns of black which grew and shrank, seemingly dependent on it's level of distress. It's eyes were surprisingly human in external shape, though they were a fluorescent green and it's pupils were shaped similar to those of a cuttlefish, in misshapen Ws. Most suprising, though, was that it was vaguely human-shaped, with a similarly proportioned torso and head, though its limbs split off into tentacles. It's beak, which Logan could only assume it had, was hidden under a Cthulu-style beard of tentacles.   
Overall the creature was abhorrent, in a beautiful sort of way. It was much less terrifying out if water, limp and surprisingly small. While attacking him in the water it had seemed easily larger than Logan, but in reality it was about five feet long at most. It suddenly began to emit some uncomfortable bubbling noises, and before Logan could interfere, it had thrown up a full fish skeleton and a half-digested snake, along with a foamy froth of salt water.  
"Oh!" Logan once again reached out but stopped himself. He had no plan after this point, a very rare sensation for him. The creature was clearly terrified and couldn't survive long out of water, but if it was returned it could become aggressive. It whined once again, another bit of foam spilling into the water, sending light ripples that lapped at Logan's shins.  
Logan wracked his brain for anything potentially helpful. He cupped his hands and dipped them into the water, then threw the handful of water at the creature. It hissed at the spray, followed by a long, drawn out rumble in it's throat. It must not have been water it needed. Once again, the creature extended a tentacle toward Logan. It didn't seem aggresive, rather, it was more needy, like a child making grabby hands to be held.   
A very stupid thought crossed Logan's mind, one that in any other circumstance he would have rejected immediately. But he had nothing better. He bundled the end of his coat sleeve in his fist, allowing no opening. He pocketed his knife and readied his other hand on his zipper. If the creature got ahold of his coat, he could throw it off and escape. He readied himself, and reached his protected hand toward the beast.   
The cephalopod trilled in what appeared to be joy, and immediately took hold of Logan's arm. Before Logan had the chance to unzip, it had freed itself from the roots and made it's way up his arm, around his shoulders, and squeezed down the back of his coat. Logan froze in shock at the sudden cold sogginess embracing his entire torso. He grabbed a tree with one hand to manage the sudden weight, and with the other, he produced his knife from his pocket. Before he could reach back to defend himself, though, he felt the beast's head nuzzle into his back. It seemed oddly content. Logan blinked and cautiously lowered his knife. If he didn't need to damage the specimen, he supposed he shouldn't.   
"I won't hurt you if you don't hurt me." Logan found he'd begun speaking to the creature despite himself. It let out a peep, then a series of rumblings. It's tone began to shift, slowly evolving from bubbling to grumbling to vocal outbursts that sounded strangely similar to a human voice. Then something that was hardly expected;  
"I won't hurt you- -don't hurt me." It wasn't fully human, it was pitched oddly, and sounded vaguely similar to Logan. Like a parrot. Logan's eyes widened and his mind raced. This thing was intelligent. This thing was important. This thing was absolutely incredible.  
"You talk?! Can you understand?"  
"-understand?"   
Logan's astonished breaths billowed out in frozen steam.   
"Why did you attack me last night? Why aren't you attacking now?"  
"-aren't- -attacking- -last night?"   
"You weren't attacking last night? You nearly drowned me. Why?"  
"Why?" The creature pushed on his back with it's head as if to nudge him on.  
"You want me to guess? So you can say it?"   
"-guess?"  
Logan thought over what had happened. If it wasn't attacking, why would it grab him? Why did it want him now? He shivered. He pulled his coat tighter to block out the cold. The cold...  
"You're cold blooded, aren't you? You're cold! You need external sources of warmth!"   
"-warmth!"   
Logan smiled. Incredible.   
"If I give you my coat, can I take you off of me?"  
"-give -coat, can- -take- off-" the creature loosened it's grip. Logan unzipped his coat and pulled it off, making sure it was accessible while not dropping it. The specimen climbed around to the front of his torso and oozed into the garment in his arms. Logan held the thing to his chest.  
"Do you need water? Most octopuses can survive out of water in moist environments for thirty to sixty minutes but it's rather dry out right now..."  
"-moist-"  
"You need water?"  
"-moist-"  
"What do you need?"  
"-moist-"  
Logan squinted. "Do you just like saying 'moist'?"  
"-'moist'? -'moist'? -'moist'?" The creature trilled in amusement. It had a sense of humor. Not a very good one at that, but it was another sign of an incredibly advanced organism.  
Logan waded over to the fallen tree and carefully set the beast down to free his arms. It's posterior tentacles wrapped the trunk for stability while it's anterior tentacles clustered into the coat sleeves. It bundled itself up and nuzzled into the fabric. Logan pulled his notebook from his drybag, sat on a nearbye tree, and began to sketch.   
He wasn't quite as good as Roman, but he could do structure. He held his pencil up to judge proportion and translated it to the grids of graph paper. His elation grew as he managed a scientific sketch.   
After ten minutes or so, the creature once again began to whine. Logan looked up from his work and tucked his notebook back into the drybag. He stood and made his way to his specimen. Upon touching his coat, he found that his prior body heat had left it and it had become fully damp and cold with salt water and mucus. The beast whined again. Logan checked his watch. He'd been gone nearly three hours, and it was another hour drive back. He'd need to leave soon for lunch.  
He was once again met with a dilemma. If he left the creature in the swamp, it would suffer in the cold. But he couldn't really bring it with him, and the swamp was it's habitat. It had presumably survived for twenty plus years having surfaced every freeze.   
"I'm going to leave. Can I have my coat?"  
The creature whimpered loudly, echoing out into the forest.   
"-my coat?"  
"No, it's my coat. I'll be back, and I'll bring you something warm that you can have, okay? Yes or no."  
The beast huffed. "-no."   
Logan sighed. "I promise I'll be back. I know you must be extremely cold... fine. You can keep the coat for tonight, but I'm taking it back tommorrow and giving you something you can keep."  
The specimen squeaked with joy and bundled itself tighter in the coat.   
"Try to keep it as dry as you can, or it won't be warm, okay?"  
"Yes- -keep."  
Logan reached out and layed his hand on the creature's head. It pushed up into his palm in response, relishing the warmth. Logan stepped back, allowing it to slip out of the coat and back into the water. It swam a few laps around him and once between his legs before poking it's bright green eyes out of the water.   
Logan made sure he had everything, patting his pockets. "Well. I'll be back... probably tommorrow morning. I have work at night." Logan doubted the beast knew what work was, but he found himself telling it anyway. "Do you... want me to call you something in particular?"  
"-call- -me-" the creature finished it's sentence with a loud trill, followed by a low growl and ending in a hiss.   
"Ree...mmm...sss." Logan felt ridiculous trying to name the beast based on it's inhuman noises, but he found himself playing along anyway. "Remus. Like twin. You seem to be a mimic octopus of sorts, with your color changes and vocal abilities. It's perfect. It can be your species name too. I don't quite know your genus, or even your phylum really with any certainty... but I can name your species, I can't imagine anyone has yet. Does that sound like a good name?"  
Remus darted around Logan's legs for a few more laps and surfaced once again, eyes bright.   
"Remus. -perfect. -good name?"  
Logan smiled. "Glad to hear it. I should tell you my name then, shouldn't I? Logan. I'm Logan."  
"Logan. -good name?" Remus twirled in the water. "Logan."   
"I'm glad you think so." Logan stared at the creature a few moment's longer before turning and heading back to his car.   
"Oh no you don't!" Logan turned to see Roman pointing accusingly. "Don't be a shut in! I gathered some ridiculous movies and you're going to watch one with me."  
Logan looked down at his sandwich and back up the stairs. He usually ate in his room, though he knew Roman disliked it for some reason. He sighed.   
"Okay." He turned back and gently set his plate on the coffee table. Before he could sit out of his own volition, Roman wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him down onto the couch. "ROMAN!"  
"Hm? There a problem?" Roman released his hold and blinked at Logan with innocent puppy dog eyes. Logan shoved him, breaking his facade into a quick bout of laughter.   
"You're an absolute menace." Logan fixed his hair and brushed himself off. "So what movies are you suggesting?"  
"Well, I wanted to be topical even if last night didn't go as well as we hoped." Roman flicked through his Netflix queue. "Our first option; The Creature from the Black Lagoon!" He imitated an old horror announcer, wiggling his fingers as if there were blood dripping down an imaginary title card in front of him.   
"Sound's patently ridiculous."  
"Exactly! Who doesn't like to riff on old horror flicks?"  
"I'm not generally one to 'riff'."  
Roman sighed. "I suppose not... then I guess that rules out 'Swamp Thing' too. Well if we want to take a bit of a departure we've got 'The Shape of Water'." Roman wiggled his eyebrows seductively. Logan winced. That was not something he necessarily enjoyed thinking about considering his morning.  
"Alright. We can watch Swamp Thing."  
"YES! You can be the Tom Servo to my Jonah!"  
"I will not be doing any riffing."   
Roman sighed. "Well then I'll do enough for the both of us."  
The show was as ridiculous as Logan had expected, and Roman's commentary, although silly, was quite entertaining. He found he had been subconsciously moving closer on the couch, not noticing until his shoulder touched Roman's. Roman looked over, but turned away quickly, almost as if he hadn't noticed at all. Within the minute though, he made another jab at the movie, using his resulting bout of laughter to slip an arm over Logan's shoulders. Not the most subtle or original of come-ons, but Logan's face flushed nonetheless. He returned the gesture by leaning into Roman's hold. The relative chaos of the last couple days was nearly forgotten in the moment.   
Logan spent the rest of the day brainstorming. He didn't want to reveal his secret to Roman quite yet, so he needed excuses to get out of the house. Of course work would be one, but that only made him think about how he'd manage his work as well as his escapades.   
The most clear but also most insane idea would be to bring Remus closer to him, but that was out of the question. He had nowhere to put it, Roman would most certainly find out, and their landlord hardly allowed guinea pigs let alone swamp monsters. Then that brought up another problem, being the creature's misery in the cold. Logan was certain it had lived through intense cold fronts before, but that didn't mean its suffering was to be brushed off. Logan chose to focus on the heat issue first and foremost.   
He considered ways to allow Remus relative warmth without removing it from its habitat. Anything electric would be unwise considering the water and distinct lack of electrical outlets in the middle of the forest. Coats were barely helpful either; the creature was cold blooded, so as soon as the coat lost warmth it would have no way to regain it. It would simply function as a windbreaker of sorts.  
Logan thought a moment. He pulled out his laptop and did a quick search. The idea was expensive, but doable. It would definitely be a good way to get the beast on his side. Logan found where to buy such a gift and closed his computer. He trotted down the stairs, grabbing a jacket on the way to the door.   
"Going for groceries!"  
"Don't strain yourself specs!"  
Logan ducked out the door and once again into his car. He started it, though before he pulled out he noticed the fuel gauge, indicating he was near empty. He sighed. This project was going to cost him an awful lot of gas.


	4. Part 4

“Hey!” Logan splashed through the water with a box under his arm. He’d gotten off work not two hours prior, but he was never tired when it came to his research. “I have a gift for you!”

He reached the usual meeting spot. His arms ached from the weight of the box he’d acquired the day before.

“Logan. Logan. -gift- -gift-” A whistle came from behind him and his back was sprayed with a barrage of icy water droplets. He whipped around.

“Hey! No splashing!” Another mist hit his face. He spat. “Stop or no gift!”

Remus squeaked and fell still. “Stop- -gift! -gift!”

“Thank you. Do you want me to open it or do you want to? I already assembled it.”

Remus twirled. “-me to open it- Thank you.”

Logan handed the creature the cardboard box, which instantly became soggy with water. It was immediately engulfed in tentacles, brought to what Logan could assume was a beak.

“Don’t swallow it, it’s not food!”

“-food!” A single half of the box floated back to the water’s surface, with beak marks torn into the edges. Logan sighed and placed the remains out of reach.

“-understand?” Logan looked back down at Remus, who was bopping the gift around the water’s surface.

“It’s a solar powered bouyant water heater. It may not work too well with the days so short and the shadows here in the forest, but it can also operate on battery reserves.”

“-heater. -warmth! -my coat?”

Logan was impressed that the creature seemed to retain words said once from the previous day. “It’s better than a coat. It’ll heat up the water around you. Let me just…” Logan placed the heater between a rock and a branch. “It is free moving but considering this is such a large area of water it would probably be best to remain in one place.” He leaned down and flipped a switch. It started to rumble and bubble violently as it filled with water. Remus breached the water with a screech and darted behind Logan’s legs.

“Don’t worry, it’s just starting up so it can heat the water for you.”

Remus causiously peeked around Logan’s calves. It squinted and let out a low whine at the piece of plastic, remaining there until the rumbles died down. The creature bravely approached the object, giving it a quick nip to assert dominance, before curling around it.

“Is it working?”

“-working? -warmth!”

“Good.” Logan smiled slightly. His gift was a success. “A good early Christmas gift then.”

“-Christmas gift- -understand?”

“Don’t worry about it. I probably won’t be coming on Christmas anyway.”

“-won’t be coming on Christmas-” the creature whined and it’s black pattern pulsed. “-understand?”

“Well I’ll probably be spending it with Roman and his family. I know that’s a little weird but he’s insisted. Ever since he learned I don’t really have much of a Christmas. I don’t know why I’m telling you this if you don’t even know what Christmas is…” Logan scoffed at his own oddness.

“-Roman- -that’s a little weird-” Remus seemed to pout. “-I don’t really have- -a Christmas. -don’t even know what Christmas is…”

Logan shook his head. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“-Roman- -don’t even know what- -is…” Remus bumped his heater as his tentacles twisted in agitation.

“He’s my roommate. I live with him. The guy who stopped you from killing me the night we met.”

Remus spat a stream of water in indignation. “-warmth!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know you didn’t mean to. That doesn’t negate the fact that I have to breathe air.”

Remus went quiet for a moment. “-spending it with Roman- -live with him.” It mumbled under its breath as if it were deep in thought. Its scalloped pattern shifted, losing shape and changing hue, and its anterior tentacles began to coil in on themselves like vines without a lattice. Its entire upper body shifted and morphed, parts of its flesh swelling and sinking in on itself. Logan watched in fascination, as well as a slight disgust.

The beast eminated a low groaning as its facial tentacles retracted and its flesh nearly turned a shade of peach, though still dulled a with an iridescent grey-green.

It lifted its face to Logan and smiled. It looked uncannily like Roman in structure, its upper body incredibly human and the shape of it’s face unmistakable. Though it still lacked the ability to mimic some aspects, clearly. It’s eyes were still reminiscent of a cuttlefish’s, surrounded by bags of looser skin. The entirety of its skin still shone a pasty, inhuman color. It also lacked the ability to grow hair, which it simulated with a mop of thin, wriggling tentacles. Those same tentacles also composed a mustache of sorts: Its body must have been reluctant to conceal them, Logan assumed, as its previous beard of tentacles seemed to be essential to its ability to eat. Most notable, though, was the fact that its lower body remained unchanged. Logan’s mind immediately went to a certain villain in one of Roman’s favorite Disney movies.

“-Roman- I have- -Roman- I’m going to- -Roman- -okay?” Remus trilled as if he’d ingeniously solved the problem. “-live with him.”

Logan shook his head. “I can’t live with you just because you look like my roommate. That’s not how it works.”

The beast whined, churning up the water into a froth in its fit. “-live with you- -understand? -how it works. -my roommate.

Logan was suprised at what seemed to be a demonstration of jealousy. The creature never ceased to amaze.

"Let’s see how you feel when we get there, okay? We still have a while before Christmas. And you have a heater so you shouldn’t need me all that much.”

“-need- -okay? -okay?” It wrapped around Logan’s legs, bumping its Romanish head against his thigh. He recoiled. Something about that was less than comfortable.

“You don’t need me, you’ve lived here for what, twenty years? And you’ve apparently never needed companionship.”

“-companionship. I don’t really- -lived here- -twenty years?”

“You haven’t lived here twenty years? More or less?” Logan found himself realizing he hadn’t done much to research lifespan.

“More-”

“I’ll count, and you stop me when I get there, okay?”

“-okay?”

“Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four,” Logan stared back at the creature’s unblinking eyes as the number rose, “twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight… really?”

“-count-”

Logan blinked and continued. “Twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-o-”

“-stop- -thirty-” Remus bumped his head on Logan’s knee. “-thirty- -years? -needed companionship.”

Logan paused a moment. He had never considered that the creature’s solitude may not have been intentional.

“Did you have parents?”

Remus let out a low whine. “-parents? -i don’t really have- -lived here-”

Logan furrowed his brows. “Have you never had parents? Do you remember them at all? Do you know any others of your species?”

“-never had parents? -lived here-”

“Do you remember how you got here?”

“-lived here-”

Logan took a moment to think.

“Infant amnesia perhaps… I’m not sure how much that would effect your species but if you were to be human that would mean your parents left before age three. Which I suppose now would make sense…” Logan reflected upon a common cephalopod birth, an r-selection species of which the mother would have many offspring at once and then pass away protecting them. Even still though, where would its siblings be? Logan took a figurative step back, and finally;

“I’ve been understanding you as a human and cephalopod hybrid subconsciously, but really I know nothing about what you are… theres really nothing to compare you to, you’re so unique, so unheard of. I’ve fallen back into my prior knowledge, or what prior knowledge I assumed I had, but I know absolutely nothing.”

Logan’s heart pounded as the words left him. Such a revelation normally would have terrified him, but it felt oddly freeing.

“You’re just full of suprises aren’t you?” He placed a hand on Remus’s head. Thin tentacles wrapped his fingers with a pressure signifying possessiveness.

“I suppose… the only way I can truly learn anything at this point is through observation. Daily observation.”

“Daily observation. -companionship. -Christmas.” The creature’s eyes lit up and it pushed it’s head further into Logan’s palm.

“Yeah… I guess I’ll have to be here on Christmas. We’ll figure something out by then. I’m making you a priority.”

“-priority. Daily observation. Logan. Logan. Logan.” Remus swam laps around Logan before scaling his body and curling around his shoulders. Logan grabbed a nearby tree to stabilize himself.

“Hey, hey! Careful!”

“-priority.” Remus trilled and whistled loudly. “-i give you- -gift!” It hopped off Logan’s shoulders, soaking him with the resulting splash. Logan sputtered and wiped his wrist across his mouth. Once he was able to see, he searched the water for Remus. To his concern, he realized it had left the area.

“Remus? Where are you?” He raised his voice. “Remus?”

“-gift!” He felt a familiar gooey, mucus-covered body press against the back of his calf. Remus’s head appeared at his feet clutching a limp, headless fish in its mouth. “-gift! Logan.” It opened its mouth and let the dead fish float on the water’s surface. It nudged it forward expectantly. The gift bumped into Logan’s shin. He took a step back.

“Thank you, but I’d rather not. That’s not people food. An appreciated gesture though.”

Remus blinked, its eyes sinking shallowly into its face in contemplation. “-understand?” It seemed to accept his reluctance and instead swallowed the fish whole.

Logan watched the creature eat. In it’s disguised form, its mouth of course didn’t function as it looked like it would, rather, his Romanish lips parted to reveal a toothless maw with a beak tucked back where a tongue would be. It was unnerving, watching the beast repeatedly toss its head back as the fish was slowly consumed in a manner of chewing not suited to it’s mouth, especially considering it’s likeness.

“You’re a skilled hunter.”

“Thank you- -gift! -i give you- -gift!”

“Oh, don’t worry, I don’t need any gifts. It wasn’t your fault that I didn’t accept.”

“-Christmas gift- -live with- Logan.”

Logan couldn’t help but snort. “You are admirably persistent. But that would not be much of a gift. Maybe for you, but you got your present already.”

“-priority. -understand?”

“I think you’ve latched onto that word a bit too tightly. I have other responsibilities, you’re just… a big one. A very uncharted and difficult one. But just one of them nonetheless. Anyway… I should probably be going.”

Remus whined and churned up the water. “-companionship. -priority. -priority. -priority.” It spat a foamy film across the water’s surface.

“Extremely social… needy… possessive…” Logan took verbal note to later record, though he somewhat directed his review toward the fussy creature, loud enough for it to hear.

“-needy- That’s not- -though.”

“You are needy. And I understand that it may be justified by your solitude but it doesn’t change the fact that I cannot functionally live with you.”

“Logan. -priority. -live with you. -justified- Logan.” Its black pattern pulsed and swelled in distress as its mimicking became more frantic. Its tentacles curled tightly in on themselves, even those simulating hair.

“No need to throw a fit, I’m giving into a lot for your well being. Now I’m going home.” Logan turned and began to trudge off. Surprisingly, the creature’s whimpering abruptly stopped, as if it had suddenly changed it’s mind. Logan turned. It was already gone. Unexpected, but welcome. He turned back and continued to the car.

He reached the edge of the swamp and stepped out, shaking off his boots and relishing the solid ground. He made his way to his car and pulled off his boots. Driving in socks was not the safest, but he couldn’t stand the feeling of wet socks marinating in a rubber prison any longer. Before he could shut the door, though, he heard a noise. Barely audible, a rustling of the grass behind his car, like a slither. Barely loud enough to convince Logan he’d heard it. Inconsequential, so Logan treated it as such and pulled the car into reverse, and began the long drive back to the apartment.


	5. Part 5

Logan pulled under the lone roof covering the reserved parking spots at his complex. He paid extra for that spot, but it was something he was willing to treat himself to. His choice was validated further within the next minute, when tiny, sparse crystals of ice started fluttering down onto the pavement. Logan had hardly noticed that it had grown that cold during his drive, though he had noticed the bright grey cloud cover slowly moving overhead and blocking out the once dominating Florida sun. He normally would have been irritated by the snow, which was bound to make driving more difficult and was a signifier that the cold wasn’t letting up anytime soon, but he couldn’t help but be excited for Roman’s reaction to such a phenomenon. He was sure to be bursting with childlike energy and whimsy.

Logan suddenly felt a fresh pang of guilt for leaving Remus in such a freeze, but at least it had its heater. He pushed the idea from his mind, locked his car, gathered his boots, and started toward the apartment.

Just as he passed the back tire, he felt a wet, familiar sensation wrap his ankle. He nearly screamed before he stopped himself, causing his outburst to sound more like a violent hiccup. He whipped around to lock eyes with Remus, curled and tangled into the underside of the car. It had forfeited its Roman disguise in order to fit its shape to the undercarriage. One tentacle had escaped its compact form, outstretched to greet Logan’s socked foot.

“Remus?!” He whisper-shouted as to not alert his roommate, who was potentially just a parking lot, a window, and some blinds away. “You can’t be here! It’s not safe for either of us!”

“-live with- Logan.” Remus looked almost smug, seemingly proud of his fantastic stealth skills, overriding his clear misery from being windblown consistently with freezing air. The reality of Logan’s anger must have finally been apparent to the beast, who quickly recoiled its tentacle and regained it’s Roman form in defense. “-Roman-” it made pleading puppy dog eyes, daring Logan to yell at his roommate.

“You clearly don’t know how often I get mad at Roman. Now get in the backseat, I’m taking you back where you came from!”

“-live with-” The creature seemed confident, confusing Logan until it reached out once again and dropped the bright red end of a severed brake line at his feet. It’s eyes gleamed with excitement at its brilliant solution. “-companionship. -priority.”

Logan stared at the jagged end, riddled with beak marks that perfectly matched the sketches in Roman’s book. That was a blow to his paycheck. At least it must have happened after he parked.

“You’re insane!”

“-insane!” Remus beamed at what he must have thought was a compliment regarding his cleverness. Or he was legitimately proud of his insanity. Logan rubbed his eyes with a thumb and forefinger, thinking over his options.

“Well… I suppose you’ll have to stay here until I can get it fixed. One night at most.”

“-early Christmas gift-” It broke into a toothless grin.

“NOT a reward. Not fun. Just a necessity. You’ll have to be quiet and out of the way. This is not okay.”

“-okay.” Remus pouted, finally realizing that his idea was not going to turn out as fun as he expected.

“Now, up the back of my coat. That should hide you while I get you… wherever I can put you.”

Remus whined and wrapped Logan’s legs to begin its slither up onto his back. The sensation wasn’t pleasant, but Logan had gotten oddly used to it, and it helped that the creature had spent fifty minutes drying out at highway speeds, though that was just another spike in his anxiety at the same time. He had to get it some hydration, and fast. Whatever its species, it clearly wasn’t built for that kind of journey, and Logan could feel it in the lethargic way it moved and how much weaker its tentacles gripped his body. He felt it nuzzle into the warmth of his back. He sighed and pulled his hood over its head, beginning his trudge to the door.

He fumbled with his key, more focused on the load on his back, but managed to get it open.

He slipped in, trying to move quick but casually to the stairs, until he noticed that Roman hadn’t made a peep. He craned his neck to see into the living room and kitchen. No sign of Roman. He pulled his phone out of his pocket to text him.

“Just got home, where are you?” He waited quietly for a reply. He heard Remus grumble softly at the nape of his neck. He jostled a bit to quiet it down. A minute or so later he got a reply.

“A suprise. I’ll tell you when I get back, idk how long, maybe a few hours tops. What, you miss me? ;)”

Logan let out a breath of relief.

“Not particularly. It’s just really relaxing and quiet over here all of a sudden.”

“>:P”

Logan smiled and tucked his phone in his pocket. That made things at least a small bit easier, though nothing about hiding an intelligent, five foot, tentacled beast in a two bedroom apartment would be easy either way. He brainstormed how he would pull this off.

First things first, he hauled the miserable, dehydrated creature to the bathroom and let it slip off his back into the tub. He turned on the tap, mixing the water to an acceptable temperature. Remus trilled in delight and began rolling its gelatinous form in the small pool of inch high water that had accumulated at the bottom.

“No splashing! Just wait for it to fill up. You wont be able to move much but you’ll be hydrated.”

From what Logan could tell, Remus was amphibious, as it could seemingly breathe air, though did become lethargic and withdrawn if out of water too long. He helped Remus wet itself by cupping his hands under the faucet and draining them onto its head and shoulders. Remus tipped its face up into the trickle, its facial tentacles reaching upward and playing with the stream. It let out what sounded like a content sigh.

The water swirled with a brownish-green that escaped Remus’s body in a thick cloud. It wasn’t surprising, as it had lived its entire life in a swamp, but it still sent shivers of disgust up Logan’s back as he realized how often he allowed this filthy creature to climb all over him.

As he washed, Remus’s black pattern receded and new, bright green spots swelled on its flesh. If Logan could reliably connect this pattern change with the proceeding of its black pattern when the creature was in distress, he realized it might mean the creature was more relaxed then than it had been at any point since Logan met it. He smiled despite his situation and stroked his hand down its head, its tentacles more appreciative then than possessive.

He took a step back and pondered his options. He suddenly recalled Decan’s kiddie pool that he used as a playpen to give his snakes enrichment. If he could come up with an excuse to take it, he could fill it and hide it somewhere, maybe under his bed. His heart beat anxiously as he realized this meant using a chunk out of his couple hours of preparation time for travel, but the house was relatively close, enough to take the bus and not lose too much time. He looked at Remus. He’d have to take it with him. He wasn’t about to leave it home alone.

“Okay Remus. We’re going on another little trip. I’m going to need you to be very quiet, because nobody can see you, got it? Still and quiet.”

“-got it? Still and quiet.” It didn’t seem too focused, blowing bubbles in the water and sloshing itself back and forth up the sides of the bath.

“This is serious. We could both be in danger if someone saw you.”

“-serious. Still and quiet.” Remus stopped sloshing and squinted sneakily. It lost its Roman form and compacted in on itself until it was the size of a beach ball. Its eyes peeked out from between two tentacles. Logan blinked at the impressive feat of shrinking nearly four feet.

“Perfect! Is that uncomfortable…?”

“Yeah-” It loosened its grip, growing six inches or so in diameter as it decompressed

“If it’s uncomfortable don’t do it, you’re going to be like that for a while. Wait here a moment.” Logan ran out and grabbed his backpack.

He returned to the bathroom and opened the bag wide.

“It’s waterproof. Usually that’s to keep the contents dry from outside sources but it can work the other way around.”

Remus whined and slid out of the tub to examine its new hiding spot. It tucked its head into the main pocket and explored the inner surface with its mustache of tentacles. It looked back up at Logan, curious.

“Logan. -my coat?”

Logan squinted, trying to interpret. “Oh! You’ll still be with me, don’t worry, this goes on my back so you can be right up against me for warmth, this just makes you easier to carry and hide. It’s pretty big for a backpack, so it shouldn’t be too uncomfortable.”

Remus seemed satisfied and quickly curled into the bag. It poked its head out and chirped as if prompting Logan to hurry up. Logan nodded and zipped up the bag, after somewhat struggling to push Remus’s head down. It let out a faint grumble as soon as he was out of its line of sight.

He slung the back over his shoulder, still surprised at how light Remus was despite its size. The lack of bones was helpful. Even still, it was about as heavy as a bag full of textbooks, so quite unpleasant. He hunched his back and felt Remus shift with him.

“Now hush. When I say ‘safe’, it’s okay to come out and make noise okay? I’ll check in on you sometimes but no sounds or getting out.”

“-okay? -hush.” It made a low humming sound as if it were considering something. “-make noise- -sounds- -sounds- -okay?”

“Right now?”

“-getting out.”

“You want to get it out first? Okay, but not too loud, we still have neighbo-”

A loud, grating, horrific screech rang out from Logan's bag, unlike any noise he’d heard Remus make thus far. He winced and nearly fell over, almost forgetting to stabilize his load weight.

“GOD- REMUS!” He let Remus down onto the ground to allow himself to check the state of his ears. “I said not too loud!”

“-get it out-” Remus wiggled innocently, seeming satisfied with its verbal purge.

Logan stuffed its head down into his bag and zipped it back up. He caught his breath. “Now shush. We’re going to be around lots of people.”

“-okay.” He felt Remus resituate against his back. He pulled out his phone and googled the time of the next bus. He didn’t bother relaying the time to his creature as he knew it wouldn’t understand what times were.

“The bus should get here in just a bit, thankfully.”

He smiled when he heard no response. Remus was taking his vow of silence seriously.

He pulled his sticky coat back on and found his way out to the bus stop at the corner of the apartment complex. Within ten minutes or so the bus pulled up to the stop. There was a hiss and the doors opened, inviting him onto the steep steps, wet from the snow on passenger’s shoes. He was careful with each step, slow enough that the door hissed closed behind him before he summited the last step.

He paid and quietly slipped to the back of the bus, trying incredibly hard to not look suspicious. He huddled into the back corner and pulled off his back to unzip it only slightly. He put a finger to his lips as he caught Remus’s neon green eyes.

“Logan.” Remus echoed loudly, beaming. “-safe- -okay?”

Logan coughed and quickly pulled out his phone. “Yeah, you’re safe? Yeah the snow is really coming down now…” He shot a death glare to Remus but let up when he noticed people turning to his scene. “Okay. Thank god. Yeah I’ll see you soon.” He hung up his fake call and put his phone back in his pocket. To his relief, people began to go back to what they were doing.

He unzipped his bag no more than an inch to catch Remus with scolding eyes. The bright green eye blinked up at him, then squinted into a smiling crescent, amused. Logan wrinkled his nose at it before again zipping up his bag.

At the sixth stop, he slung his bag over his shoulder. He slinked up the aisle and out the door, again being careful on the way down.


End file.
